


Day 125 - Brothers in arms

by Anarion



Series: An almost gravitational pull    (former '365 days of 221Bs' series) [125]
Category: Sherlock (TV), Sherlock Holmes & Related Fandoms
Genre: Brothers, Eating Disorders, Hurt, Hurt/Comfort, I'm Sorry, M/M, This is really sad
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-09-02
Updated: 2012-09-02
Packaged: 2017-11-13 10:07:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 221
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/502342
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anarion/pseuds/Anarion
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <b>No one else would ever understand. Not even John.</b>
</p><p>As a writing exercise for me, Atlinmerrick and I came up with the ‘365 days of 221Bs’ challenge: I am going to write a 221B each day for a year (meaning 365 in total). Every 221B will be based on a prompt given by Atlin on the same day.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Day 125 - Brothers in arms

**Author's Note:**

> This 221B deals with eating disorders. Please don't read if you are likely to be triggered by that.

No one else would ever understand. Not even John. But that’s fine, because no one else _needs_ to understand. Not even John. Not this.

***  
When Mycroft was a teenager, he was overweight. Since he was already mocked for being precocious and too intelligent, it was an easy step for his peers to pick on him for his looks as well.

Sherlock responded to these experiences, albeit second-hand, by refusing to eat. It did not help because it just made him look like a stork.

On his sixteenth birthday Luisa, the girl Mycroft had fancied for months, told him very publicly that he was not only boring and a swot but also fat. It was the only time Sherlock ever witnessed his brother cry. That night the two boys sat in the attic (their usual hiding place from the world) and made a pact. 

Since they would always and inevitably stand out because of their intellect, they would at least adapt by looking ‘normal’. One brother started to eat, the other controlled what he ate. It is a war they will be fighting for the rest of their lives.

***

So when Sherlock says, “Putting on weight again?” and Mycroft responds, “Losing it, actually”, it’s not two siblings bickering, it’s the very Holmesian way of caring. It means ‘Remember and be careful, brother.’

**Author's Note:**

> The prompt was 'weight'.


End file.
